Industry Intelligence

The Retail Industry Leaders Association’s (RILA) has laid out its legislative priorities for 2012, at the top of which is to level the playing field between online and Main Street retailers as regards sales tax collection. The Arlington, Va.-based trade association has distributed copies of the 2012 Retail Industry Leaders Association Agenda: A Roadmap for Job Creation to congressional offices, but drew particular attention to the sales tax issue in letters sent to committee leaders.

The laws concerning sales tax collection place Main Street retailers at a competitive disadvantage to their online-only counterparts, according to RILA, pointing to the fact that online retailers are exempted in many states from collecting the sales tax owed on purchases made online, resulting in a perceived price advantage.

In letters to the chairs and ranking members of the House Judiciary and Senate Finance committees. RILA urged timely consideration of two bipartisan bills introduced late last year, the Marketplace Fairness Act, S. 1832 and the Marketplace Equity Act, H.R. 3179.

“Quite simply, the government is giving Amazon.com a special deal that gives them an unfair advantage over local businesses,” observed RILA President Sandy Kennedy.

The wider RILA legislative agenda enumerates the industry’s top priorities and the steps that RILA will take this year to address them. Aside from the 'e-fairness' issue, they include labor regulations, tax reform, swipe fee reform, health care reform, trade and privacy.

“Our job is to tackle the big issues our members face and deliver victories that benefit them and their customers,” noted Kennedy. “With the support of our members, we’ll have the strategy and resources needed to achieve these ambitious goals.”